Adjustable-scale stock-rack.



C. W. WORTHINGTON.

ADJUSTABLE SCALE sToGK RACK;

APPLICATION FILED 00131, 1911.

'Patented Dec. 17,

2 SHEETS-SHEET l .L lh/ l.l LA. llwrm. 5 a@ Patented Deo. 17; 1912.

2, SHEETS-SHEET 2.

me/nto@ Aou Amm PLANDGRAPH CO.,\vAsH|NG-ro.\', u. cA

CHARLES w. WORTHINGTON, or RUsHvILLE, ILLINOIS.

ADJUSTABLE-SCALE STOCK-RACK.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Application filed LOctober v31, 1911. Serial No. 657,843.

To all whom t may concern.' i 5" Be it known that I, CHARLES W. WORTH- i INGTON, a citizen of the United States, re-

siding at Rushville, in the county of Schuyler and State of Illinois, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Adl justable-Scale Stock-Racks, of which the following is a specification.

This invention relates to adjustable scale stock racks, and has forone of its objects to pro-vide a simply constructed device which may be closed to retain tliestock upon the scale platform and which may be openedy toy permit the stock to pass off from the scales, and the parts likewise arranged to be moved outwardly at any desired angle to enable the scales to be employed for weighing merchandise such as hay, grain and the like.

Another object of the invention is to pro vide a device wherein the parts of the rack are braced and supported while at thesame time readily detachablewhen not in use.

Tith these and other objects in view, 'the invention consists in certain novel features of construction as hereafter shown and described, and then specifically `pointed out 1n i tlieclaims, and in the drawings illustrative ofthe preferred embodiment of the inven-V tion: Figure/1 is a perspective view of the improved device'withsone end closed and the other end yopen; Fig. 2 is a transverse section on the line 2 2 of Fig. 1; Fig. 3 is i a perspective view, from beneath, of the platform; Fig. 4 is an enlarged sectional detail illustrating the construction of the brace j straining device; Fig. l5 isa section on the 'line 5 5 of Fig. 4; Fig. (i represents the Vnotched bolt and handle enlarged and detached.y f.

Corresponding and like parts are referred to in the following description andl indicated in all the viewsvof the accompanying drawings by the saine reference characters.

The improved device is designed to be attached to the platform scale .of the form usually designated as stock or wagon scales, or with a platform large enoughy to hold a wagon, and in the drawings thcioor ofy the' Aplatform is designated yby the character 10,

the fioor being formed of a plurality of planks extending transverselyof tlie ,platform and supported by two or more longitudinal floor sills 11, the transverse iioorjmemking platform.

bers or planks 10 constitutingthe support- The platform lwith its sill members is surrounded by an oblong frame 13, the latter being supported kupony a suitable founda Patented Dee. i7, 1912.

tion, notV shown. Extending across the ends i of the floor members at'the upper side are reinforcing members 14 which.v are designed to carry the yweight rof thesuperstructure and thus distribute the weight uniformly over all .of the menibers-10 as hereafter eX-V plained. 'f

Extendingfabove the platform andk itsV rails 14, is arackldevice comprising sides and ends, the sides being` mounted to swing outwardly upon the rails 14-and the'ends mounted. to swingL from the side membersnlm The sides of the rackare preciselyalike except that they are reversely arranged, and

the description of one will suffice forbotli... f

Each side of the rack is formed with ver-f4 tical terminal posts 15-16, a relatively heavy upper krail 17 spaced [a considerable distancey below the topsy of the posts, a plu? rality of horizontal intermediate railsg18 spaced apart, and a plurality of vertical posts 19 spaced at uniform distances apart between the end posts and secured together n by any suitable means suchas nails or bolts..

The terminal posts and the intermediate posts extend below Vthe lowermost of the.l

rails 18 and are so locatedfas to extend above -the outer portions of thesupporting mem-y bers 14. kBearing upon the members 14 at. theirvends, and under one or moreoftliie intermediate posts 19, ,are metal .wear plates 20-liaving hinge members 21 at their outer edges` and connected to; opposing hinge` j members 22 attached to thek posts. y Any required number 'of' the posts kmay be provided with the combined wear plates and hinges, but` generally the Vterminalj posts f 15-16 only will be thus hingedly connected f to the members 14. It .willbe noted that the .v l fhinge port-ion of the device is at the outer edge ofthe members 14 and atr the outerl sides of the post, so that the sides of the rack will fold outwardly but will be prevented from foldingrinwardly beyond. the vertical line.

tures infthe wearplates 2O and likewise through the members 14 andthe Nfloor 4membersv 10, and each is Aprovidedwith a stop' f nut-24. r`The studs23 extend for a considerable distance below' the Lioor members so moved outwardly a distance equal to ythe.

Attached` to lthe inner faces of the terminal posts 'l5-.16 are studs 23.y

which extend .downwardly through aper-'fio iio that the sides of the'rack areadapted to be play of the studs 23, but will be limited in their out-ward movement by the engagement of the stop nuts24 with the bottoms of floor members. By threading the studs 23 and employing the nuts 24 the latter serve as adjust-able stops to enable the inclination of the rack sides to be controlled to any extent within the range oi" the threaded portions of the studs, as will be obvious. One terminal post ot each of the rack sides is formed with a circular bearing 25 preterably close to the upper rail 17, and mounted to swing upon this bearing by a strap hinge 26 is a tie bar or rail 27, the bar designed to swing over the top of the capped rail 17 when not in use and to lit by its outer end in a recess 28 in the opposite post 16 of the opposite side of the rack. Each ot the bars 27 is provided with an B -shaped strap 29 which forms a keeper or strap to engage around the recess in the post 16 as shown, and thus loclr the opposite terminal posts together.

At its upper end each of the posts 15 is provided with a circular bearing 30 to correspond with the circular bearing 25, to receive the upper end of a brace 31, and serving as a hinge to work in harmony with hinge 26. The brace rod is connected at the 39 opposite end by a bolt to the rail 27. By

this means it will be noted that the brace 31 will swing upon the post 15 together with the rail 27 when the latter is moved and form a support for the rail 27 at all portions of its movements. Each of the rails 27 is provided with a vertical slot 32 through which a pin 33 is mounted to rotate, the pin having a portion cut away at one side as shown at 34, the cut-away coming within 4@ the slot 13. Each of the pins is formed and the handle 35.

with a head 12 at one end and with a transverse threaded aperture at the other end to receive the threaded end of a handle 12. By this means the pins are mounted for rotation through the rails and held from end movement by the coaction of the head 12 The pins are thus readily inserted and held in position, and are also interchangeable so that the same pin may be employed in either rail. Each of the posts 16 is provided at its upper end with an eye bolt 36 to swingingly support the upper end of a rod 37. At its outer end the' rod 37 is formed with a downwardly directed hook 38 adapted to pass through the cut-away portion 34 of the pin 33 when the pin is turned with the handle 35 extended downwardly. By this arrangement when the arm 35 is turned in its downward posiso tion the hooked terminal 38 of the rod may be inserted into the slot 32 and passed through the portion 34 of the pin, and then when the arm is turned into 4its upward position as shown in Fig. 1 the unmutilated portion of the pinwill enter the interior of the hook 38 and thus lock the rod to the member 27 as shown in E ig. 4. By this means the two posts 15-16 of the opposite sides of the rack and the rail 27 are firmly locked together with the rack sides in vertical position, while at the same time readily detachable when required.

End gates are connected to the rack sides and as the gates are precisely alike, the description of one will suiiice tor both. Each 'of the posts 15 is provided with hinge members 39 and each gate, represented as a whole at- 40, is provided with opposing hinge members 41 engaging the hinge members of the pest so that the gates are tree to swing across the space between the rack sides and form closures to the ends of the same. Hinged at 42 to each of the posts 16, is a latch member 43 which extends inwardly from the post when in one position and is foldable against the outer :tace of the post when not in use. When in its inwardly projected position the member 43 forms a latch against which the free end oit the gate 40 bears when in closed position, and each gate is provided with a hook 44 and each of the members 43 is provided with an eye 45 to receive the hook, so that the gate may be locked in its closed position. By this means the raclr portion of the device is provided with effectual gate closures, which bear at all points against the gate from bottom to top, each gate being arranged to bear against one of the stop members 43 and retained in position by hook and eye as shown in Fig. 1.

It' will be noted that the hinges 39-41 are so arranged that the gates swing in both directions, and when the rack is to be used, one of the gates is closed and the other gate swung outwardly to permit the stock to be driven into the rack and upon the scale platform. The gate is then closed and the member 45 folded over the gate and secured by the hook 44. Generally the stock will be removed from the rack at the opposite end from which they are received, and this can readily be done by simply opening the opposite gate, as will be obvious.

iWhen one or both of the members 27 is turned into inoperative position as shown at the right in Fig. 1, the arm 35 being turned into its downward position projects below the upper line of the rail 17 of the adjacent rack side, and thus limits the further outward movement as shown at the right in Fig. 2.

. When the improved rack is not required,

the locking members 34-35 are released to The sides of the rack device together with the gates, whichfare hinged thereto, are then yfree to fold outwardly as farlas the members 22d-e241; will permit, which will be sufficient i n to permit a load of-haylor the like to be driven on the scales, or the scales otherwise fto scales of various makes and sizes.

` Having thus described the invention,

. what is claimed as new is:

longitudinal slot and adapted tohold said sides together, apineXtending through each l. -An adjustable stock scale rack including movable sides, tie bars each having a offsaid bars and-the slot thereof and having y ',.theiportion within the slot cut-away at one side, aV brace rod swinging from one of the sides and provided with a terminal hook for engagement with the unmutilated portion o-f the pin, and means for rotating said pin.

' 2. An adjustable stock scale rack including swinging sides, tie bars swinging from one of said sides and provided with means yfor detachably engaging the other side and Copies of this patent may be obtained-for :five cents each, by addressing the Gomniissoner of Patents,

eachk having a longitudinal slot, a pin eX- tending through each of said barsv and the slot thereof and cut away atone side within the slot, a brace rod swinging from the other of the sides and provided with a terminal hook for engagement with the unmutilated pin, and means forrotatingsaidy side of the pin. c i.

3. A117 adjustable scale rack including swinging sides, tie bars each having a longitudinal .slot and adapted to hold said sides together at the inner limit of their movement, a pin extending through each of said bars andthe slot thereof, said pin having a head at one end and a detachable handle at the other end and cut away at one side intermediate the ends, and a brace rod swinging from one of the sides and provided with a terminal hook for engagement with the unmutilated portion o f the pin ywhen the handle is dispose-d, in one position.

In testimony whereof I affix my signature c i in presence of two witnesses.

CHARLES W. WORTHINGTON. Witnesses:

H. T. PEMBERTON, J. H. HOFFMAN. i 

